Hello! Right now you’re reading “The Creator Confidential”, a blog where famous YouTubers share their stories and tips they have for growing a YouTube channel. Today’s post is something special and the first of a series called “YouTube from the Perspective of a Small Channel”. In this series, small YouTube channels share their successes and struggles, how they got their first subscribers, why they started, and more! If you want to be featured, you can send me an email (thecreatorconfidential@gmail.com) or DM me on Instagram (@thecreatorconfidential). Over the past week, I had the pleasure of interviewing Zak, and here is the finished result. Enjoy!
Introduce yourself!
Hey! I'm Zak! I've just started my brand new YouTube channel 'Zak Vids' in May, so I'm relatively new! In my childhood I used to create little movies and shows with my family, I've always LOVED being in front of the camera, entertaining people, and putting smiles on peoples faces! I thought that making a Youtube channel would be the perfect opportunity to do what I love!
How did you, personally, become more integrated with and interact more with the YouTube community/fellow YouTubers?
I started to become friends with other Youtubers by DMing them. If I watched their videos I would always let them know (and still do) to make them feel happy and potentially gain a friend. I've found it's a great way to start a friendship! I would also comment on other small Youtubers videos to support them! Joining Youtube Facebook groups is also something I did, which helped me discover new creators too.
How did you get your first few subscribers?
Gaining my first couple of subscribers is definitely hard! In my opinion, gaining your first couple of subscribers is much harder than gaining for example, 1k! What I did is join group chats on Instagram and Facebook! I've found this an amazing way to grow! In these group chats we all support each other. We share our videos, and then if somebody in the group chat likes my content I've found they tend to subscribe. I don't do 'sub for sub' or any other of them strategies as it's against Youtubers guidelines and a very toxic way to grow your channel as most of your 'subs' end up inactive which tells Youtube your 'subscribers' aren't watching/enjoying your content therefore Youtube stops promoting your channel!
What types of struggles do you go through as a small YouTuber? Do you have any advice for other small channels on how to resolve these issues?
A couple of issues I have had with Youtube are:
a) Using music on my videos. This is so freaking stressful! There is a limited amount of no copyright music on Youtube and you can't always trust when it says no copyright!! A great way I've found to get no copyright music is using a website called Thematic! It's amazing, so many amazing non-copyright music is on the website!
b) Editing issues! Omg, the amount of stress I've had from editing! One of the hardest things was trying to figure out how to transfer video files from my iPhone to my PC. After days of struggling to do this I've discovered OneDrive and it's amazing.
Have any funny stories you want to share that might’ve occurred during filming/editing?
During filming I've definitely had a few funny moments (although some were not funny at the time!) I spent an HOUR recording my recent video only to find out the camera wasn't even recording! It was also extremely embarrassing when I realized my window was open after I had finished recording one of my videos, and the neighbors were sitting in the garden!! They must have thought I was craaaazy talking to myself haha!
What inspires you to keep making videos?
What inspires me to create content is definitely other small Youtubers! Some of the Youtubers are Erika Diane, Grace Ariya , Anne Marie Dube, and Eva Grace. I always love watching bigger Youtubers, such as; Anastasia Kingsnorth and Molly Mae! Bigger Youtubers like them really show it's possible to make a living and a really successful career out of Youtube!
What do you think is the best and worst thing about YouTube?
The best thing about Youtube, in my opinion, is getting messages and support from people saying they love my content and my channel! It makes me feel extremely happy, and seeing that people are loving the content I've put my hard work into completely makes my day. I would say the worst thing is definitely the stress that comes with it. Having to film, edit and stick to a schedule can be very hard, and there are SO MANY technical glitches that come along the way with it all. I just tell myself, Youtube is a hobby and I should enjoy it instead of it feeling like a job.
What message are you trying to get across with your videos?
With my videos I try to entertain people! That has always, and always will be my main goal. I want people to be able to relate to me and watch my videos as if they're my friends.
What are your hopes for the future of your channel? What will your channel look like 2-10 years from now?
My goal for Youtube in about 2-10 years time is 100k subscribers! It's a HUGE goal, but once I hit that number, ALL of my dreams will be accomplished, Youtube will officially be my job and my life, which would be amazing as I love it so, so much!! Of course, I’m not expecting to get there anytime soon, I'm talking about 7-10 years!! But it is my ULTIMATE goal.
Have you encountered any types of bullying at school because of your channel?
I haven't encountered any bullying. I think this is because I have started during Lockdown, therefore I haven't been at school. My friends know about my channel but the fact that I've got a channel hasn't spread!
Finally, why should people subscribe to your channel?
You should subscribe to my channel as I provide consistent uploads (twice a week) and I have my own style of content! I upload a variety of videos like lifestyle videos, challenge videos, tutorials and much more! I always try to be as positive as possible :)
Thanks for reading! A huge thanks to Zak for taking the time to answer all the questions. Here are the links to all his socials:
Instagram: @zakvidsyt https://www.instagram.com/zakvidsyt/
YouTube: Zak Vids https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCVyiLhIofRVFUApTJCYr9Ww
Twitter: @zakvids https://twitter.com/zakvids
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